Contents

Learning Enhancement Philosophy 1

Aims 2
Definitions Related to Learning Enhancement and Inclusion 2
Roles 4
Needs that are Serviced by CIS 5
LE Support for Referred Students 5
The Referral Process 5
Assessment of Students’ Needs 6
Development of Student Support Plans 7
Implementation of Student Support Plans 7
Monitoring and Evaluation of Student Support Plans 7
Reporting Student Progress and Record Keeping 7
Students Identified As Gifted and Talented 8
Transitioning from Primary to Secondary school within CIS 8
Transitions between CIS Hong Kong and Hangzhou 8
New Admissions to Secondary School 8
Parental Involvement 9
Retention 9
Special Testing Arrangements and Accommodations 9
Appendix - Student Support Form Exemplar 10

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 Learning Enhancement Philosophy

Chinese International School recognizes that all students should be granted the direction, time,
encouragement, and resources to maximize their potential, in all areas of their intellectual,
emotional, and social development. To that end, the Learning Enhancement team works to
implement the school’s mission statement:

“Chinese International School is committed to the achievement of academic excellence

and is characterized and enriched by its dual-language programme in Chinese and
English. The mission of Chinese International School is to inspire students to a life-long
love of learning.

The school encourages intellectual curiosity and independent, critical and creative
thinking which will maximize students’ potential and promote the growth of the whole
person. The school prepares its students to be compassionate, ethical and responsible
individuals, contributing to local and global communities, respectful of other views, beliefs
and cultures, and concerned to make a difference in the world.”

As an IB World School, CIS’s mission reflects the International Baccalaureate’s mission in its
desire to “...develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a
better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.” (Principles into
Practice, 2018)

To meet these aims, Chinese International School’s Secondary School provides learning
enhancement services to students from Year 7 to Year 13 through a dedicated “Learning
Enhancement Team”.

Any CIS student is welcome to access LE services to assist him/her with homework completion,
test preparation, long-term and short-term assignment planning, goal setting, time management,
and organization.

CIS Secondary School SEN Policy - January 2019 1

Aims

Chinese International School aims to support children with Special Education Needs by:
• Informing teachers of the appropriate learning and instructional approaches for identified
students. These recommendations are made following assessment using both informal
and formal standardized assessment tools.
• Supporting the school mission statement to develop the full and unique potential of all
students and the goal of full inclusion into a regular classroom.
• Building a common understanding of vocabulary used to describe students with special
educational needs (SEN).
• Receiving support according to the requirements set forth in the IBO publication
“Learning Diversity in the International Baccalaureate Programmes”
• Encouraging the development the IB learner profile traits.
• Identifying and receiving support according to individual needs as early as possible in
their school life.
• Providing appropriate resources such as materials and personnel.
• Monitoring and evaluating policy and practice at regular intervals.
• Ensuring that parents are informed, involved and are an integral part of the Learning
Enhancement provision.
• Providing the least restrictive, most appropriate environment for the student.
• Providing opportunities for equal access to the written, taught, and assessed curriculum.

Definitions Related to Learning Enhancement and

Inclusion:

Learning Enhancement refers to: The services provided to support students who are
experiencing transient difficulties with the academic demands of CIS as well as for students with
identified special education needs.
Special educational needs refers to: A child who has “a learning problem or disability that make
it more difficult for them to learn than most children their age. They may have problems with
schoolwork, communication or behaviour.”

(NI Direct, editor. "Children with Special Educational Needs."NIDirect Government Services,
www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/children-special-educational-needs. Accessed 13 Dec. 2018.)

Specific Learning disability refers to: A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological
processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest
itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or to do mathematical
calculations, including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain

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dysfunction, dyslexia and developmental aphasia. The term does not include learning problems
that are primarily the result of visual, hearing or motor disabilities, of mental retardation, of
emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage. Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

Inclusion refers to: the ongoing process that aims to increase access and engagement in
learning for all students by identifying and removing barriers (Learning Diversity in the
International Baccalaureate Programmes p.3)

Gifted and Talented refers to: “Students, children, or youth who give evidence of high
achievement capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or
in specific academic fields, and who need services and activities not ordinarily provided by the
school in order to fully develop those capabilities.” The Federal Elementary and Secondary
Education Act. National Association For Gifted Children (NAGC)

Equal access to the curriculum refers to: providing every student with the ability to access all
subject areas and the learning opportunities afforded within them, irrespective of any physical or
mental disabilities

Student Support Plan refers to: A school based plan which sets out the nature and severity of
the student’s difficulties and the accommodations recommended to support that student in the
classroom. The plan also includes the broad diagnosis from any educational-psychological
evaluation

Direct Support: Support given directly to the student either within the classroom or separately in
the Learning Enhancement Space

Indirect Support: Strategies, and classroom accommodations given for the subject teacher to
implement.

Student Support Team: comprises all the professionals involved in the wellbeing of a student;
namely the, Advisor, Head of Year, School Counsellor and Learning Enhancement Team.

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Roles

Learning Enhancement Specialists:

• Give individual support to referred students with respect to learning difficulties and
academic needs
• Communicate with classroom teachers / student support team / administrators / parents
regarding the nature of students’ individual educational needs and support strategies.
• Work with teachers/students on task differentiation.
• Undertake internal preliminary screening of possible learning difficulties
• Keep updated records of the students requiring learning support.
• Help identify students who may be in need of academic support
• Keep parents informed about student progress.
• Establish appropriate learning targets according to individual learning needs.
• Help students understand the nature of their disability and teach self-management skills.
• Conduct informal in-class student observations in respect to identifying students who
may be in need of academic support.
• Liaise with subject teachers providing guidance for in-class strategies for students
receiving support.
• Regularly inform parents on student needs, programmes and progress
• Are available for general parent consultation regarding support issues.
• Liaise with medical professionals and educational psychologists to determine the special
education needs of the student
• Liaise with medical professionals and educational psychologists to provide evidence to
be used to apply for accommodations from the IBO, College Board, and ACT


Classroom Teachers:

• Identify students with potential special education needs and refer to the LE Team
• Liaise with the LE Team to determine an effective support plan for the student
• Liaise with the LE Team to differentiate the teaching of ATL skills.
• Implement specific strategies based on the needs of the student
• Provide feedback and discuss with the LE Team and other teachers of the specific
student to determine which strategies are most effective


Heads of Year:

• Liaise with the LE Team and Advisors to support students and their families
• Have an overview of the different care and guidance provided for each student in their
year group

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Needs Serviced by CIS

LE currently supports students with dyslexia, dyscalculia, literacy and numeracy/ computation
exceptionalities, processing difficulties, dyspraxia and motor skills/coordination disabilities,
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

A learning disability can vary in severity:

• Mild: Difficulties with learning in one or two academic areas, but the student may be able
to compensate.
• Moderate: Difficulties with learning in several academic areas, requiring some specialized
teaching and some accommodations or supportive services
• Severe: Severe difficulties with learning, affecting several academic areas and requiring
ongoing intensive specialized teaching


CIS currently provides services for students with mild to moderate learning disabilities.

LE Support for Referred Students

Most students on the Learning Enhancement list receive monitored support. This means that a
list of strategies to support that student are given to subject teachers. The Learning
Enhancement teacher then checks in with the teacher from time to time and makes occasional
classroom visits to ensure that the student’s needs are being met.
Pull-Out/Resource Classroom: Students may receive pull-out support for tests and specific
assignments by agreement between the LE and classroom teachers.
Push-In: A student may receive time-limited push-in support at the request of the subject
teacher. In this case, and where applicable and feasible, the Learning Enhancement specialist
and classroom teacher meet to discuss programme objectives, and differentiation strategies that
can support students with special educational needs.

The Referral Process

Student academic concerns can be brought to the Learning Enhancement team by parents,
staff, or the students themselves. The process is outlined as follows:
The student may experience difficulty in accessing some areas of the curriculum, demonstrates
below average performance, and/or is displaying emotional and/or behavioural difficulties that
interfere with learning. The LE team are alerted by an individual teacher or more usually by the
Head of Year. LE then begins monitoring the student’s progress, soliciting relevant feedback
from teachers, parents, and the student, and classroom and teaching strategies are
recommended.
Parents may raise an academic concern about their child to a staff member; that concern will be
directed to the LE team should a learning intervention be warranted.
If preliminary interventions and differentiation strategies do not show the desired academic and/
or behavioural improvement, and the student continues to have difficulties and/or continues to

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show behaviour that significantly interferes with learning, the LE teacher will meet with parents
to discuss possible support interventions. At this stage a thorough psychoeducational evaluation
may be requested. Formal testing results identifying a learning exceptionality are required in
order for a student to receive formal accommodations.
Some families have their child evaluated outside of school without the consultation of the LE
team. While this is the family’s prerogative, any related school involvement, including
accommodations, teacher feedback, and/or the completion of checklists for the evaluation, must
be coordinated by the LE teachers.
The student will then begin to receive support services through which his/her special education
needs are addressed. Strategies that can be applied to various learning contexts are negotiated
and implemented in an effort to support the student’s unique learning style and needs.
A Student Support Plan (SSP) will be developed which highlights the student’s strengths and
needs, diagnosis, delineates behavioural and/or academic goals, and contains teaching
strategies recommended to support the student in question. The SSP is a dynamic document
referred to regularly in an effort to support a student’s individual needs, as well as track
progress in reference to the targets set. As needs change throughout a student’s development,
and targets are met, the SSP is to be constantly renegotiated.
Parental involvement is crucial to the success of the SSP. Intervention strategies can be
effective and targets met only when students, parents, and school are in a partnership, in
agreement with and committed to the strategies, targets and accommodations outlined in the
SSP.
The SSP is drafted in collaboration with students, staff, and parents, and with reference to
recommendations indicated in the student’s psychoeducational evaluation.
When a straightforward accommodation will suffice in supporting a student, a SSP may not be
necessary.

Assessment of Students’ Needs

The LE team uses teacher reports, classroom observations and internal assessments serve the
purpose of exploring a student’s strengths and needs, but are not diagnostic. Using available
results, as well as reports and observations from teachers and parents, a decision can be taken
to refer a student to an external health services professional for a thorough evaluation.
To investigate the possibility of a learning exceptionality, a request for a psychoeducational
evaluation is standard practice. A psychoeducational evaluation may include additional testing
for any of the following: attention and concentration, processing strengths and needs, dyslexia
and/or literacy exceptionalities, dyscalculia and/ or numeracy exceptionalities, autistic spectrum
disorder, motor dysfunction and/or dysgraphia. All costs for external consultations are at the
expense of the student’s family.
Some students enrol in the secondary school, transition from CIS Hangzhou or CIS Primary
School with pre-existing and documented special education needs, and provide the school with
psychoeducational evaluations upon applying. In that case, a Student Support Plan is usually
drafted and differentiation strategies and accommodations are communicated to teachers.
According to CIS’s Admissions Policy, parents or guardians are required to be forthcoming
about their child’s learning exceptionality and/ or external evaluations.
In accordance with IB requirements psychoeducational evaluations should date no further back
than three years. There are both developmental and practical reasons for this.

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Development of Student Support Plans

A Student Support Plan (SSP) is developed by the LE Team in order to inform members of staff
about the nature of the student’s learning/behaviour difficulty and recommended teaching
strategies and accommodations to support that student. A SSP is usually drawn up following an
educational-psychological evaluation and follow-up with the psychologist and parents. The SSP
is then shared and accommodations explained to parents during a face to face meeting.

Implementation of Student Support Plans

When a SSP is initially drafted for a student, teachers are informed and the major
recommendations explained either through email or via face to face meetings. Student Support
Plans can be accessed at all times via the LE list. Teachers and the LE Team are responsible
for implementing the outlined strategies as per each individual SSP.

Monitoring and Evaluation of Student Support Plans

SSPs are updated as required, and evaluated at least annually by the LE Team. The LE Team
makes reference to teacher comments, school reports and discussions with parents and
students at Student-Parent-Teacher Conferences or through other meetings. The LE Team also
monitors the currency of psychoeducational assessments. This is particularly important for older
students who are preparing for external examinations.

Reporting Student Progress and Record Keeping

Parents are welcome to request meeting times throughout the year to discuss their child’s
progress; Student-Parent-Teacher Conferences, and report card comments also serve as a
communication avenue. If a child who receives support and/or accommodations intends to take
a standardized test (e.g. College Board SAT), or applies to a post-secondary institution, and
wishes for their learning needs to be taken into consideration, that request must be expressly
communicated by parents and the student in question to the LE and University Counselling
staff. CIS will forward psycho-educational evaluations, Support Plans, and report comments
only with the express permission from parents.
The integrity and well being of the student and his/her family is at the foundation of every
decision that is made. Confidentiality is of utmost importance in the way that the LE Team
maintains students’ records, and communicates needs to teachers. LE student records are
maintained digitally, with their access restricted to teaching staff only. Teachers have access to
Support Plans and accommodations lists in digital format as those resources are essential to
supporting students’ needs. Psycho-educational evaluations are only accessible by LE Team.
When a student leaves CIS, they will be sent a notice to collect any relevant hard copy
documents and evaluations LE has maintained. All documents which are not collected are
disposed of securely.
Should a student transfer to another institution, and parental consent is given for the release of
sensitive information between support specialists, it is acceptable to communicate student
concerns from school-to-school.

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Students Identified as Gifted and Talented

Chinese International School does not have a discrete Gifted and Talented Programme.
Extension material and enrichment opportunities are provided by the individual subject
teachers. Students who are identified as being profoundly gifted are enrolled in separate
advanced programmes (e.g. University maths programmes) supervised by their teacher and/ or
Department Head, or any individual with sufficient knowledge and expertise in that particular
subject.

Transitioning from Primary to Secondary school

within CIS

In Spring each year the Secondary LE Team (Y7-Y9), Deputy Head Academic Affairs, Head of
Year 7 and the Year 7 counsellor meet with the Primary School Learning Enhancement Team to
discuss SEN students in Year 6 who will be entering the secondary school in the new school
year. Student Support Plans are drafted for these students based on the information provided
by the Primary School Learning Enhancement Team.

Transitions between CIS Hong Kong and Hangzhou

Transition meetings occur to support students who move to CIS Hangzhou to complete Year 10.
The CIS HZ Learning Enhancement Team becomes apprised of any students of concern, and
has access to all relevant student Support Plans, evaluations, and records. The communication
between campuses is bilateral, and serves to promote a positive reintegration for students to
CIS Hong Kong in Year 11.

New Admissions to Secondary School

Students who enter the Secondary School with a previously diagnosed learning disability are
provided with a SSP based on the information from the previous school, psycho-educational
assessment and interviews with the parents and the student. New students to the Secondary
School, who are a cause for a concern or have been diagnosed with a learning disability, after
admission, are provided with an appropriate SSP.

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Parental Involvement

If it is suspected that a student has special educational needs, the LE Team invites the parents
to come into school to discuss the next steps and the ways in which the school can support the
student. Thereafter, parents are invited to meet the LE Team twice a year following Student-
Parent-Teacher conferences as well as at other times if warranted. Parents are encouraged to
contact the LE Team by phone or email at any time if they wish to discuss any issues. Similarly,
the LE Team will contact parents to seek clarification, and to inform them if there are any
changes to the support provided. Parents are encouraged to provide support at home which
mirrors the support given at school.

Retention

Student retention in Learning Enhancement is determined towards the end of the academic
year, and in consultation with teachers, parents, and the students themselves. The decision is
based upon the student’s ability to be autonomous in their learning, employ effective time-
management and organization strategies, and cope independently with the rigors of the
curriculum. Parental consent is essential for both retaining a student in Learning Enhancement,
and transitioning him/her out of it.

Special Testing Arrangements and

Accommodations

Some students have a diagnosed learning difficulty, or experience adverse circumstances

warranting special testing arrangements and/or accommodations. In these cases, upon parental
request, and subject to approval, a student may be granted special testing arrangements and/or
accommodations from external examination boards. The Learning Enhancement Team gathers
the necessary documentation and submits applications for approval to the relevant governing
bodies. Special testing arrangements may involve a different testing environment, laptop for
writing, scribe or reader, rest breaks, extra time, and/or assistive technology. In most cases the
LE Team can provide the approved special testing arrangements in school.

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Appendix - Student Support Form Exemplar

Student's Name: Student

Grade/Year: Year 8 D.O.B.： June 2006

Date of Plan: Aug 2018 Review Date: Nov 2018 June 2019

Learning Enhancement
Coordinator:
Coordinator

Psychological-Educational Assessments: Diagnoses:

December, 2017 299.00 Autism Spectrum Disorder
Requiring support for social communication,restricted,
repetitive behaviours – level 1
Without accompanying intellectual impairment,
language impairment

Associated with
314.01 Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder,
combined presentation, moderate.

Strengths:
Art - loves drawing and is a good artist
Mathematics - maths competition winner.
Good chess player,
Enjoys computer coding.
Awarded "Most Improved" student - Y7 InSo
Needs:
At the beginning of Y7, Student presented with these
needs.
Student struggles to read social cues.
Does not respond appropriately to fellow students and
to staff
Does not follow rules and procedures in class
Refuses to do tasks assigned by the teacher.
Hyperactive, incessant rocking, prods pokes and
annoys other students to gain their attention. (these
behaviours much reduced since taking ADHD
medication).
Very rigid in his behaviours.
Some difficulties in regulating emotions.
Student struggles with note taking.

Support Services Involvement:

Student is on ADHD medication under the supervision of a medical professional.

An educational psychologist will come into school to work with Student's LE teacher to provide targeted strategies
to support Student in the classroom.
The LE teacher will check in regularly with Student's subject teacher and update them on suitable strategies.
Student and his mother attends counselling sessions with the psychologist to address Student's social skill
needs.
Student receives support from Dr. ………. to help him better understand classroom expectations and assessment
requirements.

Student's Personal Targets:

Student will ask permission politely rather than just taking.

Student will eat lunch in the cafeteria with at least two other people at his table.

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Classroom Adaptations:

In group work, give the student a specific responsibility task that is within his capabilities. eg, entering data,
recording results on the computer. Being a scribe on the computer.
Only give the student one instruction at a time. Give the student direct commands rather than making
suggestions as he will not be able to understand that the suggestion is really a command.
If the student does not follow an instruction, repeat the instruction in a quiet, calm voice until he responds.
(Sometimes the student will not close his computer because he has not finished the work and he is not able to
move on until he has finished to his satisfaction).
1: Gain eye contact with him before giving instructions.

2: Let him know what he needs to do. (you need…..).

3: Keep an eye every so often and reaffirm these instructions when necessary.
The student is able to take class notes. Make sure that he has his book open and that he is writing down the
necessary information.
Praise the student when he listens and complies with instructions. If the student has a particularly good day,
email his mother to tell her. She will follow up with praise at home.
If a teacher finds that a particular approach works well for the student then please share it with the LE teacher.

The student works best in a very predictable and highly structured class. He also needs to have more than one
activity within a lesson.
Group the student with more nurturing students without overburdening these students. (Students might need
reassuring that their efforts will not be prejudiced by having the student in their group).
Ensure the student has copied down his homework, knows where to find the relevant materials etc. If the student
fails to complete homework, contact Rebecca Price immediately, with details of the missing HW. RP will then
contact mum and the student's advisors.

When working on assignments, give the student the assessment Rubric with check boxes so that the student can
tick off when he has completed that part of the work. Go over the assessment rubric with the student each time
he has class to ensure that he is following instructions.

Assessment Accommodations:

The student is permitted to take tests in the LE Space, but he probably would prefer to stay in class as he does
not want to appear different.
Dec 2018 - the student will take criterion B maths assessments in the LE Space as he finds following instructions
on these assessments very difficult.

Additional Notes/Considerations:

Mum uses a token system at home and it might be possible to extend this system to school.
Mum tries to keep tabs on the student's homework but she does not always know what has been assigned.
Dec 2018-the student is now responsible for his own homework. He will be treated in the same way as other
students if homework is not submitted on time.
Support plan from Educational Psychologist: Dr. ……….

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